Estimated reading time 3 minutes
Table of Contents
Introduction
“What’s the secret of practicing arpeggios?” Arpeggios are both an important playing technique and a useful compositional device. They can add a flowing grace to your playing. Keep reading to learn more.
This article uses musical terms. For definitions, see the Glossary at the end of the post.
The Secret of Practicing Arpeggios: What are They and What Can They Do for You?
“What’s the secret of practicing arpeggios?” Before we can answer that, we need to talk about what an arpeggio is:
- An arpeggio is often called a broken chord because the notes of the chord are played melodically (one at a time instead of altogether).
- They create a lighter, more elegant arrangement than block chords.
- Also, they work well with imbedded melodies.
How you practice them depends on the instrument:
- The secret of practicing arpeggios on stringed instruments, such as guitar and violin, is having arched fingers.
- Alternatively, the secret of practicing broken chords for vocalists is having a supported tone and singing with a high soft pallet.
- Likewise, the secret of practicing broken chords for brass and woodwinds will also be good fingering and breath support coupled with embouchure control.
- Finally, the secret of practicing broken chords on piano is having consistent fingering.
- Today I’ll be showing you the fingering for broken chords (triads) on the piano.
The Secret of Practicing Arpeggios: How Do I Practice Broken Chords?
Hand Icons (churien.deviantart.com/art/hand-template-blank-272630198) by Churien is licensed under CC BY (creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0). Modified by Geoffrey Keith.
“What’s the secret of practicing arpeggios?” As I said before, on piano it’s practicing with consistent fingering:
- The hand icons above show you the fingering for each hand.
- Below are the inversions for the C major triad.
- When you practice these exercises, use the damper pedal.
Click the soundtrack buttons to hear each example.
Mobile users: for best results reading the music, tilt your screen 90o to the right.
RH Triad Inversions:
LH Triad Inversions:
Once you’ve learned the inversions of the C major triad, you can work on the rest of the triads in the key of C major:
- C Major = C E G
- D Minor = D F A
- E Minor = E G B
- F Major = F A C
- G Major = G B D
- A Minor = A C E
- B Diminished = B D F
Each of these chords will use the same fingerings as above. The graphic below shows all the triads in the key of C major:
How do you finger arpeggios of two or more octaves?
- Any chord can be turned into an arpeggio simply by playing the notes melodically.
- However, multi-octave broken chords need a special fingering.
- After you’ve gotten this exercise down, you can add extra octaves by substituting fingers. For example, the right hand broken chord can be extended into extra octaves by substituting the 1 finger for the 5 finger at the top of the arpeggio.
RH Two Octaves:
LH Two Octaves:
The Secret of Practicing Arpeggios: Where Do You Go from Here?
“What’s the secret of practicing arpeggios?” Once you’ve gotten down the broken chords in the key of C major you can start learning them in other keys, such as:
Final Thoughts on “What’s the Secret of Practicing Arpeggios?”
Here are some extra practice tips:
- Start slowly and work up to speed. Always go for accuracy before speed.
- Use a metronome, because it’ll help you keep a steady beat.
- Focus on smoothly crossing your thumb across your palm as you transition octaves.
- Try playing the arpeggios using staccato and legato.
- You can make broken chords more interesting by varying the rhythm and mixing up the order of the notes.
- Try to keep your hands relaxed as you practice.
- Practice regularly and develop good practice habits.
Have fun playing!
Related Posts
- Do You Want Cool Chords for Your Song?
- How Do I Avoid Tension in My Wrists When Playing Piano Arpeggios?
- D’you Want Some Music Tips and Tricks I’ve Learned Over the Years?
© 2024 Geoffrey Keith
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